New Nominet survey finds that millennial mothers are increasingly turning to self-employment for a better work-life balance

A new study by the .uk domain has found that there has been an entrepreneurial shift in the UK workforce over the last few years, with self-employment increasingly becoming the path of choice amongst younger workers. What’s more it believes on the basis of the evidence it has accumulated this trend will continue, with millennial women with young children at the vanguard.

The .uk domain report, which explored the way millennial mothers were seeking alternative career paths found that 17 per cent of millennial mothers plan to start their own business within the next 12 months in search of a better work-life balance. It also found that a further 21 per cent of the women surveyed were keen to go down the self-employment route and anticipated running their own business within the next 5 years. These figures, it claims, show clearly that today’s working women are now determined to not only raise a family but also to succeed in business.

The .uk domain also discovered that the majority of the millennial mothers surveyed (54%) who had returned to traditional full-time employment after giving birth struggled to juggle family life with a 9-to-5 existence. This struggle resulted in 8 per cent of new mothers immediately becoming self-employed and 22 per cent of those surveyed becoming increasingly anxious about their job and their future prospects.

The survey found that flexibility over working hours was the key reason which persuaded many new parents to choose to work for themselves: in fact 78 per cent of the survey’s respondents said that this was the main reason for setting up their own business. The impact of childcare costs also played a part in decision too, with 89 per cent citing prohibitive childcare costs as the main stumbling block to returning to full-time work. Of the millennial mothers surveyed, 71 per cent admitted to feeling guilty about returning to work and leaving their child in the care of someone else.

Whilst setting up a business might be a daunting prospect for most people, the survey found that many millennial mothers were simply not worried about taking the plunge: 20 per cent of the respondents has already conducted some form of research, nearly a third, (28%) had set up a website in readiness, whilst 13 per cent had even gone as far as penning a business plan.

In the view of Russell Haworth, CEO, Nominet, which runs the .uk domain, the survey clearly shows that we’re experiencing a sea-change in the workplace:

“I think that we’re seeing an entrepreneurial shift in the UK workforce, and women with young children are at the forefront,” he said.

“There is real enthusiasm amongst millennial mums to be their own boss to ensure they can achieve the all-important work-life balance, while still generating an income to support their growing family.”

“Advancements in technology mean it’s never been easier to set up your own business online and to quickly develop a space for yourself and your ideas; making it more viable to abandon the traditional ‘9 to 5’ and embrace entrepreneurship,” he added.

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